


Time-Rusted Gears

by MeemQween



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Byleth and Sothis have the strongest bond known to man, My Unit | Byleth Needs a Break, My Unit | Byleth Needs a Hug, Nonbinary My Unit | Byleth, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pyralis is a Little Shit, Rating May Change, Time Loop, Time Shenanigans, you cannot convince me otherwise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-11
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:15:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23099188
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MeemQween/pseuds/MeemQween
Summary: Time and time again, Byleth and Sothis found themselves going through the same events. Time and time again, they always ended the same way: bloodshed. Records upon records, numbers rivaling that of the monastery and the shadow library’s books combined, filled their world as the goddess and her vessel tried to find their way out of their looping trap. There was no end in sight for either of them. That is, until Sothis’s focus landed on the Savage Mockingbird, a person who was different each and every time Byleth met him.“Perhaps,” Sothis mused to herself, “this little one can help us escape.”Updates will be irregular for I am procrastination incarnate.
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth & Original Character(s), My Unit | Byleth & Sothis, Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc & My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 1
Kudos: 38





	1. Rusted Time

**Author's Note:**

> This fic idea has been plaguing me for far too long. It's about time that I wrote it down.

Byleth shot up in a cold sweat, their eyes were wide and the ringing in their ears certainly wasn’t helping. Byleth’s hands immediately found their way to their chest, seemingly looking for something, and not finding it. Strangely, that didn’t seem to calm down Byleth any less, even though they knew that it would be bad if their hands  _ did _ find what they thought would be there. Frightened sobs and gasps fell from their trembling lips, panic never seeming to end.

Until arms found their way around Byleth’s shoulders, followed by a familiar and soothing voice.

“Calm down, Byleth. It’s over, it’s behind us.”

Sothis’s voice was always nice to hear, no matter what. Her touch, however, was unnerving to Byleth at that moment. Byleth finally managed to find their voice, though it was only a whisper.

“How many were there that time?”

The goddess sighed, letting go of her “vessel” and walking in front of them so they could actually see her.

“You are in no such state to hear my answer, no matter how many or how little there were.”

Byleth gave her a look. Sothis groaned.

“I’ll tell you when you’re in a better state to handle such a thing during the next loop, ok?”

Both Byleth and Sothis knew how many, though Byleth only had an approximation. Sothis was the one who knew exactly how many. Byleth was the one who watched. Each and every time. Byleth hated it.

The taller being nodded slowly, the goddess’s answer registering one word at a time.

“Next loop. Right.”

Byleth stood up slowly, glancing at the area around the two to help ground themselves more. It was the same as the last time they were there. The same pocket-dimension-like area that existed solely within Byleth’s head. They quickly spotted Sothis’s throne, as well as many bookcases and a small desk, added over time to make the space a bit more like a home, which was a good thing given the situation the two were in.

Byleth made their way to the desk and closed a book resting in the center, picking it up and walking to the closest bookshelf. They gently pushed the book into the end of the bottom shelf, eyes solemnly gazing at the three ribbons hanging from the top of the book’s spine. Blue, lavender, and white. White quickly became Byleth’s least-favorite color when they began using the ribbons to organise.

“It’s quite a shame that  _ I _ wasn’t the one who was in control when this story ended.”

The sickly sweet voice coming from behind Byleth caused them to freeze.

“I would’ve  _ loved _ to watch everything come to an end.”

A hand that Byleth knew belonged to the voice lightly touched their chest, the other gently stroking their hair. A quick glance down told Byleth exactly what the voice was about to do. They recognized those hands, as much as they wouldn’t like to admit it. The hand on their hair fluttered to Byleth’s chin, gripping it and forcing them to turn around.

Lavender eyes highlighted with violet eyeshadow met theirs. The voice changed to one that Byleth knew in a much better light.

“I know that I would’ve absolutely  _ adored _ watching your little birdy’s pretty face get ripped to shreds up close. Such a wonderful sight it would’ve been!”

Unfortunately for both Byleth and Sothis, they couldn’t do anything to stop them. There wasn’t anything that could be done against a being like this-- a being that possessed as much power in their little world as they did. That fact hurt both of them, but brought great joy to the one that had Byleth scared stiff.

A grin grew on the being’s face, one that was wide and impossible on the face the being had stolen this time. Every feature on this thing's face lacked any sanity, eyes wide and irises small in a predatory gaze, grin looking like it was created by a knife. Byleth hated this look on anyone's face, but it was a bit more haunting on Yuri's; few other faces caused so much discomfort, which Byleth did  _ not _ want to think about.

Yuri's voice, though still not  _ quite _ his, emerged from the creature's lips.

"Aww, are you still scared of me, Bebe? Even after going through hundreds of thousands of stories with each other?"

“That is  _ quite _ enough! Stop tormenting poor Byleth!”

Sothis came into view, and the being with Yuri’s face grinned, turning their head to face the goddess.

“Or what, Sothis? We all know that nothing can be done to me. If there were, poor little Bebe would suffer, too!”

“I said  _ enough _ !”

The goddess flourished her arm and a force knocked the being clear across the area, away from Byleth. Sothis quickly took the being’s place in front of the frozen figure, acting as a barrier between them and Byleth.

“Byleth has already suffered enough! Just leave them alone!”

The being cackled as they stood back up, their body morphing back into what they usually appeared as. They mirrored Byleth, except for the fact that their clothes were ragged, hair impossibly long and in knots.

“Enough for  _ them _ isn’t enough for  _ me _ !”

Byleth finally found their voice, putting on a mask of confidence to hide their discomfort in the presence of the other being.

“Stop now, Pyralis, and I will allow you to take control in the Sealed Forest in the next loop.”

The being, Pyralis, tilted their head a bit in consideration of Byleth’s proposition. They finally responded, voice as sickly-sweet as it was venomous.

“Sounds good to me,” they began, body and voice morphing into that of the magenta-haired merchant that helped Byleth so many times. “Pleasure doing business!”

And with that, Pyralis was gone, leaving Byleth and Sothis alone. The goddess sighed, gently taking Byleth’s hand and leading them away from the bookshelves and towards her throne. Byleth could hear their friend mutter to herself (they knew what she was saying, “what was Rhea  _ thinking _ ,” and other things along those lines).

Byleth quickly calmed down again with Pyralis gone, now speaking up to their friend, “So, what should we try next time, Sothis?”

Sothis hummed, falling out of her muttering rant, and looked up at her companion.

“Well, what do  _ you _ want to try? We’re going to do everything fate forces us to do anyway.”

It was Byleth's turn to hum, taking on a look of thought as Sothis let go of their hand, wandering up to her throne and sitting down. A glimmer in their eyes appeared, catching Sothis's attention.

"I might have an idea, though it will probably need some planning for it to work."

Sothis smiled at her friend and clapped her hands together.

"Well, let's get to planning then!"

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

The loop started out as it always did: Byleth being woken up by Jeralt before a mercenary from their merry band interrupted them, signalling the arrival of the three lordlings and Kostas’s gang of bandits. The young mercenary (if they could even be considered young at this point) called fighting off the bandits with the three leaders-to-be a second nature at this point, having done it so many times. Byleth often found themself having small talk with Sothis within their mind, finalizing their plan for whatever loop they were on, or maybe just keeping each other company. This time, it was the latter.

"So," Sothis began, "what are you going to do to Kostas this time?"

It became a game for the two of them: 'How are we going to make Kostas back off this time?' It kept the beginnings of each loop interesting without having an overall effect on the future. Byleth cut down a bandit as they responded in their head.

"I  _ could _ roundhouse kick his jaw again, but I did that last time. I'm open to suggestions."

The mercenary could hear the goddess’s laugh as they ducked low to avoid a bandit’s axe swing, kicking out the bandit’s legs at the same time. Pyralis’s voice chimed in, though Byleth didn’t mind it this time as Pyralis had no power outside of their world.

“How about you hit him where it hurts before you knock him away? Haven’t done that in a while!”

The mercenary brought their sword down upon the fallen bandit as they considered their crazed companion’s words.

“Sounds fun, I’ll do that.”

Byleth resisted the urge to chuckle as Pyralis’s childish cheer echoed in their head; the act alone would take away the mask that took dozens of loops for them to perfect.

It didn’t take long before Byleth’s body tore through all the bandits, leaving them in front of Edelgard and facing the leader, Kostas. A hard-hitting kick knocked the bandit over just moments ago, forcing him to stay down as he regained his breath. Kostas leaped up then, glaring at the mercenary and princess before rushing at them with his axe raised.

“You’ll die!”

“Yeah, sure, say that all you want,” Sothis mused, unamused by the bandit leader.

With practiced movements, Byleth ran forward, sword meeting axe in the air. The mercenary brought their knee up sharply, causing Kostas great pain as his hold on his axe weakened. Byleth used the opportunity to knock said axe out of his hands and proceeded to use the hilt of their sword to harshly hit Kostas’s chest, knocking him flat on his back as he groaned in pain.

“I will let you escape,” Byleth began, approaching Kostas, “your men who still live need a leader. However,” they added, pointing their sword at his neck, “should I hear that your band threatens the safety of the innocent again, I swear on my title of the Ashen Demon that I will not hesitate to personally track you down and rip your head from your shoulders. Am I clear?”

A look of fear joined the pained look in Kostas’s eyes as Byleth mentioned their title, “Crystal.”

Satisfied, Byleth huffed and sheathed their sword, turning and walking back to the Adrestian princess. There, they let instinct take over once again as they began to speak.

“Are you unharmed?”

Edelgard nodded, “Yes, I assume that you are unharmed as well?”

Byleth nodded and turned their head to the rest of the party as they approached: Jeralt, Claude, and Dimitri. Alois’s call from the west soon after signalled the arrival of the Knights of Seiros and their journey to the monastery.

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

The differences came when their walk to the monastery reached it’s halfway point. Politely excusing themselves from the three nobles attempting to converse with them, Byleth jogged up to the front to join their father and the jovial knight. Jeralt looked over at his kid and gave a soft smile.

“Have enough of those three already, kiddo?”

Byleth’s nod caused a light chuckle to come from the Blade Breaker as he turned back to Alois, the knight who was leading them to the monastery.

“So, you’re talking about recommending Byleth to be a professor, aren’t you?”

Alois beamed.

“Of course! I saw how well they battled those bandits! It would be impossible for me  _ not _ to recommend them to the Archbishop!”

Jeralt sighed before responding to the knight, “Well, before you go do that, why don’t you actually  _ ask _ Byleth what they think before you make the choice for them?”

Byleth quickly shook their head before Alois could respond to their father.

“I apologize, but I will have to decline.”

Alois’s shocked expression was faced towards the young mercenary as he spoke, “What? Why?”

“I am a learner, not a teacher.”

Before Alois could speak again, Jeralt expanded on his kid’s words, “What they mean is that they’ve never taught anything to anyone before. Never successfully, anyway. Byleth can, however, pick up on skills faster than anyone else.”

“Learning to teach should be easy for them, then!”

“They don’t do well socially, either, as you can probably pick up on.”

A look of realization washed over the knight’s face as the words registered. Byleth could see the disappointment slowly forming on his face, which they quickly tried to remedy.

“I’ll sleep on it tonight and give you an answer tomorrow if that makes you feel better.”

That seemed to do the trick, as Alois beamed at Byleth.

“Of course! I’ll hold you to that!”

With that, Byleth fell back into silence next to their father as they walked with the knights and students to the monastery.

“Remember the plan,” Sothis reminded, “you only have tonight.”

“I know, Sothis,” the mercenary silently responded, “I know.”

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

Night fell by the time the group had arrived, and the archbishop, Rhea, gave them a greeting and thanked them for rescuing the students, offering the teaching position to them as well. Jeralt and Byleth shared a room, given to them for the night for them to rest. But not before Byleth talked with their father.

“Papa?”

Jeralt looked up from the gear he was sorting out, glancing at his child before going back to work, a silent signal that Byleth had his attention.

“We’re not going to leave here anytime soon, are we?”

Jeralt chuckled at that, partially forced, but not fully.

“What gave it away? The fact that Rhea and I know each other? Or the fact that Alois wants you to be a professor here?”

“Neither. It was Rhea tearing me apart piece by piece with her eyes that gave it away.”

That made Jeralt freeze.

“So I wasn’t the only one that noticed that, huh, kiddo?”

Byleth hummed in response, the two falling back into silence for a few moments. Jeralt sighed and got up, sitting on his bed and facing his kid.

“So what do you want to do, kiddo? I know for a fact that you don't trust her already.”

Time for Byleth to cut to the chase.

“I want to leave.”

“You can't run from the church, Byleth.”

“We won't know until I try it. You've managed to do it as long as I've been alive.”

“You've got me there, kiddo. But what about Alois's request? What are you going to do about that?”

“I was thinking that you could take that position.”

Jeralt looked at his kid with a shocked expression.

“Excuse me?”

“Well, you've taught me everything I know, same with training some of your men how to fight properly.”

“Teaching nobles and training my men are two different things, Byleth.”

Byleth swung their legs off the edge of the bed.

“Surely it can't be that different. It might be the same, just minus the alcohol.”

That earned a chuckle from their father.

“Fair point. But what about you? What will you do?”

Byleth hummed, thinking.

“I still have to think about that part. All I know is that I've got to get out of here.”

Both of them sat in silence again for a few moments before Jeralt spoke up again.

“Well, I'll tell them that I'll take the teaching position. If you leave, I'll act like I don't know anything. Just make sure to give me some sort of message to tell me that you're safe after a while, alright?”

Byleth nodded.

“Of course, Papa.”

Byleth laid down in their bed, curling up under the covers. It was silent as they slowly fell asleep. Sothis’s voice quietly spoke to them right before they fell under.

“305,893,” Sothis began, “there were 305,893 in the last loop.”

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

Byleth woke up early that morning to get ready for their grand escape. They had managed to get into the dining hall the moment it opened, taking a few sweet buns and sneaking back to their and Jeralt's room to put in a small bag. They were planning for their escape to be right after the meeting with the archbishop, when many of the monastery's residents had yet to awaken.

It didn’t take long before Seteth, Rhea’s right hand, to lead Jeralt and Byleth out of their guest room and to the archbishop’s chambers for their meeting. Rhea’s fake and warm smile greeted them as soon as they entered.

“Good morning, Jeralt and Byleth. I assume that you slept well.”

Jeralt nodded, “Yes, Lady Rhea. We did.”

“That’s good. Have you thought of your answer to the offer we have given you?”

Byleth and Jeralt shared a look before looking back at the archbishop.

“We have, Lady Rhea, and I have decided to take it in place of Byleth.”

Rhea looked between the two, observing them for a few moments before responding, “May I ask why?”

Byleth was the one who responded this time, “My father is more capable of teaching than me, archbishop. He is the one who taught me everything I know.”

“In addition to that,” Jeralt added, “my kid doesn’t do well around new people. Being a teacher here would be a sure-fire way to shatter them mentally.”

Rhea hummed in consideration.

“Very well. But I must ask that you remain in the monastery for now, Byleth. Your capabilities as a fighter would make you an excellent knight.”

Byleth nodded in response.

“You are dismissed. I will summon you later to help you prepare for being a professor, Jeralt.”

The father and child duo politely bowed in response before leaving the chambers, making their way back to the room. The second the door to their room closed behind them, Jeralt sighed.

“I guess this is the last time I’ll see you for a while, kiddo. I wish you luck.”

Byleth nodded, picking up their sack of gear, their sword, and the small bag of sweet buns.

“Thank you, Papa.”

With that, Byleth silently left the room.

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

It was easy for Byleth to find where they were going. A small spot by the ruined chapel, covered in rubble and greenery. To the average person, it wasn’t anything special. To Byleth, however, it was a spot that led to a hidden corridor. Only one other person knew about it, and Byleth was certain that he would know about them the second they stepped in.

They silently moved the overgrown ferns aside as they crawled into the entrance, feet silently landing on the stone floor. Byleth looked back up at the small entrance, watching as the greenery fell back into place.

“You should get going now,” Sothis reminded them, “he is already making his way here.”

“I’m aware, Sothis.”

Byleth quietly walked through the corridor, their memory serving as a map of where to go, leading them through hidden passage after hidden passage. They didn’t have to hear footsteps to know that they were being followed the entire way. Pyralis spoke up after a while.

“Your little birdy isn’t that far behind. He’s picking up the pace.”

Byleth didn’t respond. They knew. Turn after turn, step after step. Quickly and silently, though not unknown, they went through the last hidden passage, leading into a small meadow, closed off from the outside world thanks to the surrounding cliffs. It was the perfect hiding spot for anyone that knew of its existence.

Slowly and calmly, they walked to the center of the area, taking in the warm sunlight. Sothis’s voice made them freeze.

“He’s here.”

Another voice, a familiar one, sweet and charming-- yet still fake-- called out to them.

“Now how did you find your way here, little mouse?"


	2. Ashes to Rust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not many things made Yuri worried. He hadn't expected to add anything to that small list anytime soon.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two time!

There weren’t many things that made Yuri worried. Plan was failing? Yuri always had more cards in his hand, each an ace in its own right. Someone was threatening Abyss? Each member of the Ashen Wolves is a one-man army if they need to be. The Ashen Wolves  _ somehow _ get beaten in a fight protecting Abyss? Just committing the act was enough to send each and every able-bodied fighter residing underground after you, no orders from the Savage Mockingbird necessary.

This, however? This sent Yuri into a worried frenzy. Someone found the secret passage that only Yuri knew about. Someone from the  _ surface _ . Someone that Yuri was following the second they set off his little magic tripwire when they entered, set in place just in case situations like this happened (not that he  _ ever _ anticipated an event like this happening, it was just better to be safe than sorry).

The person in question was always just out of sight, just turning into the next hidden passage when Yuri thought he caught up. It took longer than he would like to admit for him to realize just what was wrong with the situation he was in: someone from above ground (who somehow found the entrance only Yuri knew about, which was already a red flag in itself) somehow knew Abyss’s secret passageways almost as well as Yuri did. Goddess, this person might even know Abyss’s secret passages  _ better _ than Yuri did, given how easily they were navigating the tunnels. Yuri quickened his pace at the realization, still as silent as before.

It took even longer for Yuri to realize just where the person was going-- scratch that, where they just turned into-- the hidden meadow he had found years ago, kept a secret just in case he needed to evacuate and hide Abyss’s children. Magic flickered at Yuri’s fingertips as he came to the end of the tunnel, just in case. He witnessed the outsider freeze in the center of the meadow the second he stepped onto the grass. Had they known that they were being followed? Never mind that.

Yuri finally spoke to the mysterious person, using his charming tone, hoping that that would prompt the person to (unwisely) trust him, “Now how did you find your way here, little mouse?”

A beat of silence passed between the two.

“I know you can hear me, little mouse.”

“I heard. Apologies, I just wasn’t expecting you to catch up this quickly.”

“So you  _ did _ know,” Yuri began, raising his arm to aim his magic, “but that doesn’t answer my question.”

The figure remained calm, taking off their bag of gear and setting it down beside their feet, rolling their shoulders.

“I’m aware. I’m guessing that you wouldn’t believe me if I said that I’m lost, given how I got in and where we are.”

Yuri couldn’t read their voice. Impossible. He kept his mask on, trying to remain calm as he spoke.

“I wouldn’t, we both know that’s a lie.”

Yuri heard the person hum in response-- they still hadn’t turned around to face him.

“Indeed it is. The next best answer I’ve got is that it was intuition, though I don’t expect you to believe that, either.”

Yuri raised an eyebrow.

“Intuition?”

“Yes, intuition. I needed to run and hide. My intuition can be surprising if I need to hide.”

Yuri hummed in consideration. He didn’t believe a word that this person was saying, even if they were unreadable.

“Running and hiding from whom?”

“In general? The church. Specifically? The archbishop.”

A beat of silence. Wind began to gather around Yuri’s hand.

“What if I said that I didn’t believe you?”

“Then I would say that it was my best answer.”

Bullshit. Yuri fired the wind magic from his fingers, aiming for the person’s head, only for it to be met with a fire spell from the other person, sent the second they turned around. The two magic attacks collided, sending a blanket of smoke around them.

Yuri took the opportunity to draw his sword from his sheath, dashing towards where he saw the person’s faint silhouette. He slashed out towards them, and the sharp sound of metal meeting metal resounded-- Yuri’s sword met with the figure’s, rapidly drawn when he swung his sword. Neither person dared to give in, stuck in a stalemate.

The smoke cleared, and Yuri could make out the person’s face. He couldn’t read their expression, all he knew was that it was a mask. He did, however, recognize who they were. Yuri pushed against their sword, finally creating some distance. He spoke with a smirk.

“You’re the Ashen Demon.”

“You know of me?”

Neither of them moved, swords raised.

“Of course. Who wouldn’t? The Ashen Demon, child of the Blade Breaker.”

The Ashen Demon hummed, almost as if they were amused, though their expression didn’t change.

“That I am.”

Yet another beat of silence passed between the Underground Lord and the Ashen Demon before they both lowered their swords. They didn’t sheath them, however, both anticipating the other to strike.

“So, Ashen Demon, what are you doing running and hiding from the church, if that is what you’re doing?”

“Perhaps I’ll give you the full reason if you give me a name to call you.”

Yuri smiled, “You first, friend.”

He could’ve sworn that a ghost of a smile passed the Ashen Demon’s lips, but their mask had perfectly fallen back into place before he could see it. They sheathed their sword before they responded.

“Byleth.”

Yuri followed suit, sheathing his own sword.

“Pretty name. You can call me Yuri.”

“Well then, Yuri, I suppose I owe you the full explanation now, don’t I?”

Yuri chuckled.

“That’s what we agreed on, didn’t we?”

“That we did.” The Ashen Demon, Byleth, sat down, pulling out a bag. They took out a bun and offered it up to Yuri. “Want a sweet bun? It’s the least I could do for making you chase me around.”

Yuri raised an eyebrow and cautiously took it with a smile, sitting down in front of them.

“I suppose this is going to be a long explanation, then?”

“Maybe, maybe not. Depends on how good I am at storytelling today.”

The Savage Mockingbird couldn’t help but chuckle at that, and Byleth began their story.

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

Yuri had determined that Byleth could be trusted enough to be let into Abyss after he heard their reasoning for running from the church, despite the fact that they were impossible to read.

“So,” he began, leading the now ex-mercenary through the passages, “how were you able to find your way through these tunnels so easily? I still doubt that it was this ‘intuition’ of yours.”

“I have to keep some of my secrets, Yuri.”

He chuckled lightly.

“Like what lies behind that detailed mask of yours?”

Yuri heard a huff in response, almost a laugh.

“Maybe. I’ll tell you one day-- if you ever trust me enough to take off your mask around me, that is.”

Yuri chuckled, turning his head back to Byleth with a smile as he walked.

“Then I guess we may be in a stalemate for a while, won’t we, friend?”

“I suppose we will.”

Yuri let out a small chuckle again, facing forward and continuing to lead Byleth through the tunnels. They were both silent the rest of the way. It wasn’t uncomfortable, though he would’ve preferred to converse with them. It couldn’t be helped; the Ashen Demon didn’t talk much anyway, keeping their secrets close and only speaking when spoken to. It would make the game they had started much more fun.

A turn here, a turn there. Always silent. It made the walk feel much longer. What cut the length short was Yuri turning a corner and almost running into a red-headed mage.

“Oh, there you are, Yuri-bird.” She leaned back, hands behind her head as she gazed past Yuri and towards Byleth. “Who’s your new friend?”

“I’ll introduce everyone to them when we get back. Now why are you here, Hapi?”

Hapi shrugged.

“One of the kids got worried, said they saw you sneaking out in a rush. I just came out to look for you to ease their worries a bit.”

Yuri couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Guess I owe them an apology, then. Let’s go before they get worried about you, too.”

With that, he continued on, Hapi and Byleth following close behind. The red-headed mage walked next to Byleth and glanced over to them with a neutral expression.

“I know that Yuri-bird is gonna introduce us when we get back, but how did you get down here in the first place?” She gestured to the corridor they came from. “It’s not easy to find where you two came from.”

“To be completely honest,” Byleth began, “I’m not sure either. I was just trying to hide.”

“And that’s just about as much as you’ll get out of them for now, Hapi,” Yuri added, not turning around, “They don’t like to talk unless spoken to, I’ve found.”

Hapi shrugged.

“Fine by me. I was just curious.”

The group of three continued in silence the rest of the way to Abyss.

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

What signalled their arrival was a young child running over to them to greet them, more specifically, say hi to Yuri, who became locked in place the second the child hugged him. Hapi couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight. It was cute, seeing this kid look up at Yuri, saying how worried they were about the Underground Lord. Yuri couldn’t help but smile as he ruffled their hair and apologized to the kid for worrying them. Satisfied, the kid released Yuri from the hug and ran off.

Yuri chuckled as he watched them run off and looked back to Byleth with a ghost of a smile.

“Come on. I still need to introduce you to the others.”

With that, Yuri started walking again, Byleth and Hapi following close behind as he led them to the classroom. Two others were already in there, chatting by themselves before they got cut off by their arrival.

“Hey, boss!”

The man’s sudden loud outburst seemed to startle the young woman next to him, earning him a smack from her fan.

“Honestly, Balthus! Would it be that much trouble to not speak in such a loud tone next to me?”

“Sorry, Constance--” the man, Balthus, cut himself off when he noticed Byleth with Hapi and Yuri, “Woah! Is that the Ashen Demon?”

The lady, Constance, did not look amused in the slightest at Balthus’s loud outbursts.

“They are indeed, Balthus,” Yuri responded, walking into the room with the mage and the Ashen Demon behind him. It was Constance’s turn to look at Byleth with slight interest in her eyes.

“The Ashen Demon? Are you perhaps talking about that mercenary some of the people here have been talking about?”

Byleth nodded.

“I am indeed The Ashen Demon. You can call me Byleth, though.”

Hapi spoke up, walking over to and half sitting on one of the desks.

“So I know you sort-of said how you got into the tunnels, but why exactly are you down here? You mentioned running and hiding?”

Byleth sighed, sitting in a chair of one of the desks before retelling what they told Yuri. How they were hiding from the church, and how they and their father got involved with the church in the first place. They explained Rhea’s fake expressions, gazing at Byleth like they were something to be taken apart. They explained that their father took the place as professor instead of them. Byleth explained everything they could.

The Ashen Wolves all looked at Byleth with looks of concern in varying degrees, especially Hapi upon hearing the particular detail concerning Rhea’s body language towards them. Balthus was the first to speak up.

“So you’re stuck hiding here?”

“That would be correct, unless I’m not allowed to stay here,” Byleth responded, looking towards Yuri.

“Just pull your weight and don’t bring any unwanted attention down here and we won’t have any problems.”

Byleth nodded.

“Of course.”

“Then it’s settled. Let me show you where you’ll be staying,” Yuri began, walking towards the classroom’s exit, “Have any requests about your living arrangements?”

Byleth gave the other three wolves a small wave before following Yuri.

“You’re the leader down here, you make the decision. I’ll make do with wherever you put me.”

“Good choice.”

Yuri had led them to a room towards the outskirts of the underground city. It was small, but still cozy with the old bed in it.

“Here you are. This is where you’ll be staying until fate decides you go somewhere else.”

Byleth walked into the room, setting their belongings down by the bed.

“Thank you. This will do just fine.”

“I had hoped it would. I’ll leave you to do your thing now. Just don’t get into any trouble,” Yuri said with a wave as he left.

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

“Honestly, Bebe, how can you read this many books?”

Byleth sighed as they read the forbidden tome, sitting in a hidden corner of the Shadow Library.

“Books have information, Pyralis. And information is what we need.”

They heard Pyralis groan.

“But books are  _ boring _ !”

“Because they don’t cause death or chaos?”

“Exactly!”

Byleth hummed, writing down a few notes on the parchment they brought with them to Abyss.

“I guess I need to make a note to read some horror novels for you when we have the time, then.”

Byleth chose not to add “ _ or you could read some of our records _ .” While Pyralis was mostly powerless in the ‘real’ world-- unless Byleth gave them control over their body, of course-- mental torment was always an option. Reading the records they had written over the past loops would just give Pyralis more ways to mess with them.

_ Byleth really didn’t want to visualize the worst possible ending of a loop again _ .

“So what are you researching this time, Byleth?”

Byleth glanced upwards and saw Sothis’s translucent figure sitting on the edge of the old desk, looking over the notes. They looked back down and continued to read and write.

“Trying to figure out a ritual-spell. We have a bit of time before our plan for this loop can continue. Figured I could use the time for this.”

Sothis hummed, reading over the notes and the tome. The goddess froze when she realized just what Byleth was trying to figure out.

“Byleth, what in my name are you--”

“I know, Sothis,” they interrupted, “I just wanted to try and figure it out.”

“But there’s no way for it to succeed if you pulled it off! Not to mention the actual dangers of the spell!”

“I have ideas for ways around that. Could you do something for me?”

“Not if it has anything to do with whatever you’re trying to do.”

Byleth didn’t need to look up to know that the goddess was crossing her arms at them.

“It doesn’t, don’t worry. I just need you to check and see if Anna is in the marketplace down here.”

Sothis sighed and hopped off the desk, silently floating away. Byleth decided that it was a good stopping point for note-writing, conjuring a fire spell in their hands to dry the ink faster. They stopped the spell and rolled up the parchment, taking out a smaller one to write a note.

“She’s here, Byleth. Not sure how long she’ll be here, though.”

“Alright. Thank you, Sothis.”

Byleth rolled up the smaller parchment after drying it out as well, getting up and gathering their things. They put the tome back into its spot on the shelves before leaving, looking for the familiar magenta-haired merchant. She wasn’t hard to spot. Byleth called out to her as they walked over.

“Anna?”

The merchant looked towards Byleth, a smile quickly forming on her face.

“Byleth, is that you? It’s been so long!”

Anna ruffled Byleth’s dark teal hair the moment they came into reach, fluffing it into a mess easily. Byleth didn’t care, it was easily fixable.

“What are you doing in Abyss?”

“I have my reasons, Anna. I suppose that you’re down here for business?”

“Of course I am,” she said, pulling her hand away, “Anything I can do for you? Or are you just saying hi?”

“I have a request.”

One of Anna’s eyebrows raised as she watched Byleth pull out a small rolled-up parchment along with a few gold pieces.

“Could you deliver this to my father? He became a professor at the academy earlier today.”

“I suppose there are reasons as to why you can’t deliver it yourself?”

“Exactly.”

Anna hummed in consideration.

“Alright, kid. I’ll do it. Won’t tell him where you are, either.”

“Good,” Byleth responded, handing her the parchment and payment, “Thank you, Anna.”

“It’s no problem at all, Byleth! I’ll have it done by tomorrow!”

Byleth nodded and turned around, walking back towards their room. They couldn’t keep the ghost of a smile from forming as they heard Anna’s customary farewell ring out from behind.

“Pleasure doing business!”

❅⠒☽✧⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽❁☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅✧☾⠒❅

Jeralt couldn’t help but be worried about his kid. He knew that Byleth was strong and knew how to survive, but Rhea’s reaction upon learning that they went missing was nothing short of haunting. The order she had given was quite strange: “Don’t worry about mobilizing our forces to find them. However, if you find Byleth during a mission, stop at  _ nothing _ to bring them back.”

If Byleth being in Garreg Mach was so damn important to Rhea, why didn’t she mobilize any of the knights? That didn’t even touch the surface of her ordering to show no mercy if they find Byleth by chance. There was no way Jeralt would be able to show no mercy. He would make a show of giving his kid a chance to escape, even allowing them to cause major physical harm if it meant they could get away.

Jeralt’s worries melted away for the most part when he ran into Anna as he was looking through the market the day after he had chosen his house. She had waved him over and offered him a parchment.

“It’s not a job,” she had said upon seeing his face of contemplation, “Someone asked me to give this to you.”

And so there he was, sitting at his desk in the front of the Golden Deer classroom with the parchment sitting to the side.

“What’s that, Jeralt?”

He looked up to see Leonie, who was looking at the parchment.

“I don’t know. A merchant I know gave it to me earlier today. Someone asked her to deliver it to me.”

She hummed in response before speaking in a hushed tone.

“Do you think it’s from Byleth?”

“It’s a possibility.”

“Well open it up! If they were the sender, I know that they would want you to read it as soon as you could!”

Jeralt huffed, grabbing the parchment and opening it. His body let out all the tension as he read it. It was from Byleth.

“So? What does it say?”

“That,” he bagan, rolling it up again, “Is confidential, I’m afraid.”

“What? Even for your number one apprentice?”

He looked at Leonie and deadpanned.

“Yes.”

Jeralt had to resist laughing at Leonie’s disdain and masked his face with a neutral expression. He went back to working on the lesson plans for the day, hearing Byleth’s voice as he thought about the message. It was a comfort.

“I can’t tell you where I am, but know that I am safe, Papa.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, thanks for the support y'all have given me, even if it's not that much.
> 
> Check out Gilded Sanctuary by LadyVanitas and HappyBirddi! These two lovely people are who inspired me to actually write down my ideas in the first place!


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